Teaching German

Autobahn

"Autobahn" is the German word for motorway and refers to the federal controlled-access highway system in Germany. The network has a length of 13,000 kilometers (8,078 miles) and is one of the densest in the world.

The idea for the construction of the autobahn was first conceived in the mid-1920s, but due to economic restraints construction was slow. The first public road of this kind was completed in 1932 between Cologne and Bonn. Just days after the 1933 Nazi takeover, Adolf Hitler enthusiastically embraced an ambitious autobahn construction project. By 1936, hundreds of thousands of workers were employed in construction, as well as in the supply chain for construction equipment, steel, concrete, signage, maintenance equipment, etc. The autobahns were used by the Nazi propaganda ministry and are often seen as improvement for military transports. Here you can find an automatic compilation of all DW content referring to "Autobahn."